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Remembering Maria Ortiz |
Maria del Pilar Margual Ortiz falleció en Covenant Hospice el 27 de junio a la edad de 68 años después de una lucha de 8 años con cáncer del seno. Nació el 19 de Junio, 1947 en Fajardo, Puerto Rico . Era hija de Juan Bautista Margual y Julia Maria Ortiz Sáchez, quienes la precedieron en su muerte.
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Maria del Pilar Mangual Ortiz died at Covenant Hospice on June 27 at the age of 68 after an eight year battle with breast cancer. She was born June 19, 1947 in Fajardo, Puerto Rico . She was the daughter of Juan Bautista Mangual and Julia Maria Ortiz Sanchez who preceded her in death. Maria and her siblings were raised in Canovanas and Santurce, PR and moved stateside in 1958, settling in San Francisco , CA where she graduated from high school. Maria moved back to Puerto Rico when she was in her late teens. She worked at San Juan International Airport for the for the National Weather Service as an administrative assistant until 1980 when she moved to back to the States to train to be a part of a field party for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Norfolk, VA and Cocoa Beach, FL. Upon finishing her training, she moved to Pensacola to start surveying the waters off of the Gulf Coast as the only female member of her team. She called Pensacola her home from 1981 until her death. She worked for NOAA for more than twenty years. She raised her son, Juan, on her own, sending him to St. Michael's for middle school and Pensacola Catholic High School . After Juan graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1993, Maria followed in the footsteps of her sister Ana and became a realtor. She worked for several real estate agencies before starting her own business, Maria Mangual Real Estate Services. She worked relentlessly for all of her clients, earning the respect of fellow realtors, recognition, and many awards for her dedication and hard work. She faithfully served her clients until the last few weeks of her life, even from her hospital bed. Maria loved to play games and was very competitive. She spent many late nights playing lively and often heated games of dominoes and Monopoly with family. She enjoyed watching football, especially the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. She spent several weeks with her son's family each year and celebrated every special occasion she could with her grandchildren. When she visited, she prepared delicious, authentic Puerto Rican dishes following recipes in her well-worn cookbooks, using the perfect ingredients, and taking time and care to make sure the taste was just right. Maria loved Latin music and going dancing with her friends, cancer and cane notwithstanding. She loved to travel with her son's family and her sister, Ana. She took the whole family to Puerto Rico to meet relatives and to show them the island she loved in 2007, and in 2009, she suggested a two and half week road trip from Dayton, OH to California, stopping at as many national parks and roadside attractions as they could. The family made memories with Maria that they will share for generations. Maria loved her family more than anything in the world, but she loved God above all. She strove for holiness every moment of every day, never missing Mass, participating in the sacraments regularly, reading her Daily Missal, and praying the Rosary, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, and many other devotions daily with her sister Ana and friends Al and Mary Genna, and Terry Denadal. She gave God thanks and praise for everything, every day, and now she lives with Him and all the angels and saints in Heaven. Maria was preceded in death by her parents, her brother, Juan "Johnny" Bautista Mangual, her godmother Maria Josefa "Titi Fefa" Gonzalez, her special aunt and mentor Delfina "Titi Mamí Fina" Ortiz, and many beloved aunts, uncles, and cousins in Puerto Rico . She is survived by her son, Juan José Mangual, his wife Emily, and their children Mary Rose, Natalie, Julia, John, and Katherine of McDonough, GA; her sister and best friend, Ana Lillian Mangual Garrigues of Norfolk, VA; Ana's son Timothy (Jennifer) Kriebel of Apopka, FL and their children; Ana's daughter Audra (Andrew) Buff and their children also of Apopka, FL; and her brother Johnny's children, Juan Mangual, Martín Mangual, Francisco Mangual, Taina Mangual, Amil Mangual, and Amir Mangual. She also leaves behind many special aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces, nephews and friends in Puerto Rico , Spain , and around the United States . Maria was able to visit her family in Puerto Rico one last time in October 2014. Funeral services were held on July 1 at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church which included the Rosary and visitation. The Mass of Christian Burial was held at Holy Cross Cemetery following the Mass. The Reverend Christopher LeBlanc celebrated the Mass. In lieu of flowers, the family asked that memorial contributions be made to the Sacred Heart Foundation in Maria's honor by visiting https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/ SacredHeartFoundation to support the Cancer Care Center or the Pablove Foundation to fund childhood cancer research and programs that enrich lives of childhood cancer patients. Visit www.pablove.org to make a donation. The family would like to extend a special thank you to the caring staff at Covenant Hospice who treated Maria with such love and dignity, Thomas Sunnenberg, M.D., her oncologist at Sacred Heart Hospital, Dr. and Dr. Miguel and Eddy Gutierrez, and her many, many friends in Pensacola who helped her throughout her cancer battle, driving her to appointments, checking in on her, preparing her favorite foods, and lifting her spirits, especially Terri and David Denadal, Dalena Candel and friends, Gloria Agusti, Gelinda Crowley, and Suat Tran. |